1
The Impact of a Full-Release Mentoring Model on the Practice and Retention of Beginning Teachers Lisa Abrams, PhD Therese Dozier, EdD Virginia Commonwealth University Center for Teacher Leadership AERA April 14, 2009

2
Introduction u 40-50 percent of new teachers will leave the professional within the first 5 years (Smith & Ingersoll, 2004). u Urban districts spend $8,750 for every teacher that leaves the district entirely; non-urban districts spend $6,250. The cumulative costs for all schools and districts across the country to hire, recruit, and train the replacement teachers is estimated at $7.34 billion (Barnes, Crowe and Schaefer 2007). u Mentoring has been shown to have a positive impact on teachers’ decisions to stay in the profession and the same school (Borman & Dowling, 2008; Ingersoll & Kralik, 2004; Kapadia, Coca & Easton, 2007). u Frequency and duration of mentoring; the range of supports provided can enhance the impact of mentoring (Guarino, Santibanez & Daley, 2006).

4
Local Mentoring Program u The Beginning Teacher Advisor (BTA) Program was first implemented in 2005. u Program stemmed from past work of a well- established university partnership with local schools districts. u Partnership identified a shared need to provide more induction support to beginning teachers in the districts’ highest-need schools. u Two cohorts of participating beginning teachers: 2005-2007 and 2007-2009

5
Key Features of BTA Program u Based on the Santa Cruz Mentoring Model u Competitive selection process for mentors/ coaches (n=12) u Time to mentor/coach; each mentor assigned to 15 teachers u Intensity of work with each teacher (at least one hour a week focused on improving instruction) u Formative assessment/data collection tools u Confidentiality u Ongoing opportunities for professional develop- ment and problem solving

6
TRADITIONALBTA PROGRAM Full-time classroom teacherFully released mentor Mentor chosen by school administrators Mentor selected through highly competitive application process Usually one day orientation12 full days each year as well as weekly PD forums “Buddy” teacher provides emotional support Mentor (BTA) helps BT improve practice Work with BT whenever it can be scheduled Work with each BT 1-2 hours weekly Support during 1st year in classroom Support during 1st and 2nd years in classroom Assessment of BT infrequentAssessment of BT ongoing using formative assessment and data collection tools

11
Frequency of Mentoring u Beginning teachers in pilot schools reported meeting with their mentors more frequently. u 5.4% of comparison school v. < 1% of pilot school teachers reported “never” meeting with their mentor. u 46.9% of pilot v. 28.8% of comparison school teachers reported that their mentor helped them to “a great extent” during their first-year of teaching.

12
Discussions of how best to meet the needs of all students The overall chi-square test is statistically significant (alpha
{
"@context": "http://schema.org",
"@type": "ImageObject",
"contentUrl": "http://images.slideplayer.com/11/2983451/slides/slide_12.jpg",
"name": "Discussions of how best to meet the needs of all students The overall chi-square test is statistically significant (alpha

13
Work with Mentors u Beginning teachers in pilot schools were more likely to report that their mentor: u Observed their teaching and had follow-up discussions. u Modeled lessons or strategies and/or co-taught in their classroom. u Helped in using student assessment data to guide instruction. u Provided classroom management strategies. u Response similar for mentoring related to differentiated instruction, providing resources and materials and assisting with lesson planning.

18
Career Plans There were no statistically significant differences between the pilot and control group survey responses (alpha
{
"@context": "http://schema.org",
"@type": "ImageObject",
"contentUrl": "http://images.slideplayer.com/11/2983451/slides/slide_18.jpg",
"name": "Career Plans There were no statistically significant differences between the pilot and control group survey responses (alpha

20
Conclusions u Full-release mentoring model provides beginning teachers with greater levels of support than traditional approaches. u Beginning teachers w/a BTA report participating in a richer mentoring experience that goes beyond “survival support”. u Survey results suggest the full-release model has a more powerful impact on classroom practice than a traditional models. u Program has had a positive impact on attrition rates, even though beginning teachers reported lower levels of satisfaction with the profession. This work and the BTA program is funded in part by a USDOE Teacher Quality grant.